DNC narrows down four cities as finalists for 2012 convention

posted at 2:20 pm on July 1, 2010 by Ed Morrissey

And lucky me, the Twin Cities is one of the places that the DNC has chosen for its Final Four. This isn’t new; the Minnesota metro area had been on the short list for the 2008 convention as well, which may mean an edge for the state that gave Barack Obama a 10-point victory in that election:

Recognizing that President Barack Obama faces serious challenges in the Midwest he carried not two years ago, theDemocratic National Committee on Wednesday picked three heartland cities and just one in the Republican-friendly South to consider for its 2012 nominating convention.

The cities are Cleveland, St. Louis, Minneapolis and Charlotte, N.C.

A presidential nominating convention brings millions of dollars and intense attention to its host city as well as political good will for the party itself. Obama won Ohio, Minnesota and North Carolina in his 2008 race against Republican John McCain, who won Missouri.

With Democrats competing for Senate seats in Ohio and Missouri, the announcement was likely to energize the Democratic base in those states ahead of the crucial midterm elections this year. Even so, putting states in play for possibly holding the convention was not a guarantee for wins there in 2012; McCain held his nominating convention in Minnesota, yet lost the state.

That would allow me to do some extensive coverage of a Democratic convention without the hassle of traveling to a remote location, and I’d certainly be happy to see the local area get an economic boost. I’m just not sure where the Democrats could go to recreate Mount Olympus a second time. Minneapolis and St. Paul demonstrated that they could host a grand partisan event in the last election, and the DNC would certainly see a friendlier environment here than the RNC did. I somehow doubt that the anarchists would crawl out of the woodwork as they did in 2008 to throw bleach on conventiongoers and to smash windows and plot worse acts that the police stopped before they could get started.

However, I doubt that Minneapolis will get it, even having been on the list two straight times. Obama may have issues with the Midwest in 2012, but probably not with Minnesota. I’d like to think that my state would come to its senses after four years of incompetence in the Obama White House, but this is the same state that elected Jesse Ventura, Al Franken, and sent Amy Klobuchar to the Senate to ask Elena Kagan about her Twilight preferences. If Obama loses Minnesota, the only state never to vote for Ronald Reagan, he’s got much bigger problems elsewhere.

So where will they go? Let’s take a look at the other choices:

Charlotte, NC – Obama carried North Carolina in 2008 by only 14,000 votes, but will almost certainly have trouble keeping it next time. Democrats aren’t going to get the turnout they did in 2008. A national convention here might help keep North Carolina in the blue column.

St. Louis, MO – If Obama wants to make a difference in the Midwest, this would be a better choice. Missouri is a key state in presidential elections, one Obama just missed carrying in 2008. He’s not likely to do much better in 2012, though, even with a national convention.

Cleveland, OH – This is in the heart of the Rust Belt, and a region where economic downturns hit hard. Obama won Ohio by over 360,000 votes, even more than the margin in Minnesota, but this traditionally Republican state may flip in 2012. Ohio has the largest number of electoral votes of any of the four states mentioned, and a win in Ohio puts the GOP nominee in a difficult position to win the presidency.

I’d say Democrats will choose Cleveland in the end. It’s still a “heartland” state, but it matters more than the two Midwestern states mentioned, and probably better positioned than North Carolina.

Update: It was a 10-point victory in Minnesota for Obama, not 16 points. Thanks to Jeff D for the reminder.

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I’m guessing Cleveland. Ohio is the most crucial state out of the four finalists. He’s gonna win Minnesota. If he doesn’t, that means the GOP candidate is likely gonna wind up with 350+ electoral votes. He’s not gonna win Missouri. He didn’t win it in 2008(although it was razor thin), so 2012 is a long shot. And I don’t think he’s gonna get North Carolina. They ain’t falling for “Hope & Change” again.

Actually thinking of the Dem convention in 12 is amusing.
I wonder who they will be nominating? Will anyone in Ohio still be working in the private sector? Will there even be an election?
Do they need a convention if they outlaw Republicans? Which city has the best golf courses, the most Latinos or the minority du jour?
So much to consider!

They’ll pick the city that they think Tea Party protests are least likely to break out.

Buddahpundit on July 1, 2010 at 2:36 PM

Heh, they better hold the convention on the moon if they’re trying to avoid protests. If the Tea Party can get hundreds of thousands in DC on 9/12 with very little notice, they can turn out a few thousand minimum with 2 years notice.

Obama being on the ballot gave way to Charlotte electing its first Democratic mayor in decades and Pat McCrory, the former extremely popular mayor of Charlotte, being defeated ever so slightly for the Governorship despite being well liked in the most populated region of the state and his strong moderate appeal (received rare endorsements from newspapers that pretty much always endorse the Democrat, even the UNC student newspaper). In addition to keeping NC in the blue column for Obama, there are quite a few swing seats in NC (Larry Kissell comes to mind, along with Heath Shuler assuming both are still there in 2012) and McCrory faces an uphill battle against Bev Perdue in what is sure to be a hotly contested gubernatorial race. Charlotte would be a very smart pick for the Democrats. Let’s hope they don’t think the same.

They are urging SSt. Louisans to come downtown ( a place few residents ever venture) and pretend to be tourists on the day the committee does its site visit. They urge you to mingle with the delegates and say how much you love the city. If they come here, one good thing will happen, they will all support conceal and carry when they leave.

Given the attacks suffered by Republican delegates in 2008 including people I know personally, I’m surprised anyone would consider the twin cities for an event like this. I sure hope the Republicans never go back. Minnesota should be embarrassed at the poor security they provided. Sorry Ed but that’s the truth.